Fame is the Spur

Michael Redgrave and Rosamund John star in this passionate and bittersweet story of one couple's fight for social justice in Britain.Growing up in a deprived North of England mill town in the 1870's, young Hamer Radshaw (Michael Redgrave) experiences the suffering of the working classes first hand. During these early years Hamer learns the story of the 1819 massacre at Peterloo and begins his involvement in the new wave of radicalism sweeping the North.Radshaw succeeds in becoming one of the first MP's for the newly formed Labour party. His wife Ann (Rosamund John) stands by her man in the early stages of his fledgling political career - until a tragedy during a miner's strike begins to weaken Radshaw's political convictions. As he becomes part of the Establishment he once fought so hard against, the issue of Women's Suffrage threatens to their relationship apart when Ann's own campaigning threatens Radshaw's growing reputation amongst the political class.Allegedly based on the life of Ramsay MacDonald, 'Fame is the Spur' remains one of the Boulting Brothers' finest dramatic works and a major achievement in British cinema.